Plague Journal, After The Rain
Saturday morning. The air is clear and clean, the green of spring is iridescent. Birds are calling, hidden in the foliage. I heard report that we received a half inch of needed rain. For now that goes a long way to relieve the mild drought we’ve experienced. Perhaps my neighbors have not noticed. I intend to plant some tomatoes and pepper plants so timely rainfall makes a difference to me.
Human beings are like any other mammal. We go about our business, our heads down, thinking not at all unless some immediate obstacle demands our attention. Then perhaps we bring our formidable faculty of reason to bear.
Plato wrote that Socrates once said: ὁ … ἀνεξέταστος βίος οὐ βιωτὸς ἀνθρώπ
“The unexamined life is not worth living…”
Socrates is said to have uttered this while on trial for his life. He was charged with attempting to undermine the government of Athens as we would understand the indictment. Socrates was a “strange bird,” not your typical Athenian man-on-the-street. Clearly it is well to opine about self-reflection, or differently stated, examination of life, if you happen to be standing trial for your life. Now that would be a bracing, wake-up occasion would it not?! Otherwise one has no need to think very much at all, — just “go with the flow,” according to conventional wisdom. That assures the status quo will not be disturbed, your “good citizen” reputation untarnished.
Socrates lost the trial before the assembly of his Athenian neighbors.
Given the choice of exile from Athens, or death what do you think was Socrates choice?
